Underestimating the Enemy
by Ayaia of the Moon
Summary: Mad Mod isn't what you'd call a "first-string" villain. He was like...the decoy. But They never should have underestimated him. Because even Mad Mod can have a good day. Oneshot, Crack.


Mad Mod wasn't your typical "first-string" villain. He was more…the decoy. He was the sort of villain you dealt with while actually taking steps to stop a much bigger, badder villain. Like Slade. He wasn't all that smart, either. He was a crotchety old Brit with a chip on his shoulder, that's all. He just happened to be very good with hypnosis.

Even repeating this to himself time and again, Robin couldn't help thinking that somewhere along the line, Mad Mod had been underestimated. Or something. Because, honestly, who took one of his plans seriously? Especially if it was a plan that involved enslaving the Teen Titans by use of some out-of-date clothing that had been sold to the masses?

Even taking into account that the only titans…well, _silly_ enough to wear his strange clothes were Starfire and Beast Boy; Even taking into account that Raven had said she wouldn't be caught dead in one of the ridiculous outfits that had been sent in the mysterious box; It was seriously quite well thought out, Robin had to admit.

Because half the town had seen Starfire's and Beast Boy's augmented wardrobe and decided to copy it. And in the end, when it turned out that the designer who'd sent the clothes was really Mad Mod, and he'd somehow interred the clothes with some sort of hypno-whatever, the only choice they really had was to eliminate the problem.

That was the main hitch, Robin decided. He hadn't seen it in the right light. He'd determined a problem and a solution. The threat was that half the town, not to mention Starfire and Beast Boy, were hypnotized to fight the remaining titans, who, in turn, didn't feel right fighting back. Cyborg's temporary resolution had involved knocking everyone out by use of an ultra-low sonic frequency emitting from his hard-drive.

Robin had, thus, determined that if a certain frequency could _temporarily_ fix this quandary, then by God, a different frequency could _permanently_ fix it. The target: obviously the clothing; the source of the hypnosis, and the key to bringing down Mad Mod. So he and Cyborg had come up with this plan on the fly; a frequency that would target only the molecules of the clothes, thusly, ending the hypnosis of everyone that was wearing them.

But Robin hadn't thought trough the ramifications of this action; he hadn't thought logically; hadn't brought common sense into play. It was somewhat ironic, considering this was always the argument he had with Bruce, too. For all his smarts; for all his genius, Robin hadn't made the connection that eliminating the threat of the hypnosis was really a glorified way of saying he had stripped half the town of their clothes.

And oh, was he realizing that now.

"What happened? Last thing I remember was hearing Mad Mod's voice...Mad Mod! He hypnotized us again, didn't he? I'm gonna pound him so hard he'll wake up in 1968! I'm gonna…"

Robin heard Beast Boy make a sound of disbelief as his speech died.

"…I'm gonna need some pants!"

"Beast Boy is correct!" Starfire continued in his stead. "We should find Mad Mod and pound him right now!"

It was habit; Robin, upon hearing Starfire's voice, turned toward it…Raven was looking at him and Cyborg in enjoyment. Cyborg had averted his gaze, and Robin copied him at once, turning red.

"You really ought to wait for a costume, Starfire…" Raven was saying lazily, still giving Robin and Cyborg a strange, amused look. "…otherwise the boys won't be able to help."

"So…that box from D.D. Ammo…" Beast Boy was still muttering, his own blush a strange contrast to his green skin. "It was Mad Mod all along?"

"If you rearrange the letters of D.D. Ammo, you get Mad Mod," Robin explained with as much dignity as he could, considering he had his back turned when he answered Beast Boy's question.

"If we hurry, we can track Mad Mod's hideout," Cyborg reminded them, tapping his arm impatiently. "He was transmitting some sort of radio signal through the speakers in the park."

Crisis duly averted, the titans were able to capture Mad Mod, and thwart his plans. They were even able to resurrect a semblance of the party that had been going on in the park in the first place, though many of the people decided that they were partied out, having awoken as if from a dream, only to realize that they had to find ways home sans clothing.

It was somewhat funny, though, being in the tower for the next week or so. Starfire and Beast Boy were much more reserved than usual, having greeted the world in their clothing-optional state. Cyborg seemed to get over it first, and resumed his normal behavior of stomping Beast Boy on the Game Station. Raven seemed least affected anyway, but would smile knowingly at Robin far too much for his comfort. And needless to say, they all had trouble meeting one-another's eye.

Robin just hoped that they wouldn't underestimate Mad Mod again. Because "third-string" villain though he was, it had to be said that his plans were brilliant in their own right. Because Robin had encountered aliens, dangerous mutants, and monsters made up of regenerating goo…but he'd never had his thoughts derailed to the point of him loosing his poker-face before.

The brilliance of Mad Mod was really the reason for his villainy. He thought they were bratty Americans who needed to respect their elders. Any other villain saw them as the formidable Teen Titans. And, ironically, thinking of the Teen Titans as what they really were: teenagers; it really seemed to do the trick better than even the most evil of villainous plans that they encountered.

-O-

A U T H O R S N O T E

Okay…I know. What the random, right? I had those little titan-digest books…and this whole little comic in there made me laugh. So I thought I'd expand on Robin's thought-process.

Mad Mod is totally my favorite villain, though. :D

He's just really…random.

:P

Ayaia


End file.
